The polymerization of cyclic monomers in the presence of catalysts containing metals, such as, tungsten, molybdenum, rhenium, and ruthenium, yields linear polymers that retain the carbon-carbon double bonds that were present in the monomer. This polymerization is known as Ring Opening Metathesis Polymerization or ROMP. Successful catalysts for ROMP include the Grubbs' catalysts, benzylidene-bis(tricyclohexylphosphine)-dichlororuthenium and benzylidene[1,3-bis(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)-2-imidazolidinylidene]dichloro(tricyclohexylphosphine)ruthenium. Other known initiators for ROMP reactions are a nitrogen-containing initiator and a sulfur-containing initiator attributed to the work of Ciba Corporation; and those synthesized by Christian Slugovc. These catalysts, however, can be active at room temperature and are not always the preferred choice for compositions that need to be transported or stored. This creates a need for an efficient catalyst for the polymerization of cyclic olefins, particularly dicyclic olefins, that is thermally switchable, inactive at room temperature, and active at an elevated temperature.